Whenever a significant awards ceremony draws close, you'll find an outcry for the addition fresh award types to acknowledge underappreciated efforts and fill the hearts of enthusiasts with niche passions.
My colleague previously argued for a horror game category. That would be fantastic. So would tabletop games, which is a passionate advocate's mission. But they will have to forgive me when I prioritize just as with other blinkered fanatics, I have a cast-iron argument backing this proposal stands as crucial above others. Here's the proposal: There should be a category for puzzle games.
Organizing Gaming Categories
Organizing artistic expressions defies precise measurement; opinions vary greatly, and it will always start arguments and end in fuzzy definitions. It's understandable that film award organizations avoid this approach. Yet it remains a necessary evil for the industry of gaming, which are so diverse it's challenging to consider them a single creative category.
For the full spectrum of gaming accomplishments to gain proper attention, and for games of all stripes to receive proper recognition, specific award classifications remain vital.
Existing Game Classification System
Prominent interactive entertainment events currently feature genre categories for Action, Action/Adventure, Role-Playing, Combat games, Simulation and strategy titles, plus athletic and racing experiences. Collectively, these six categories successfully include many game types, and you can find room for numerous titles.
Different situation exists for brain-teasing titles. No suitable classification appears to put them. Think about these outstanding current releases, each quite distinct: structural challenges from a specific release, the pulse-pounding block-matching in a different title, and the sweetly sociological logic puzzles of a third title. Which classification works between these six categories? Simply put, no category fits.
Acknowledgment Issues
Numerous examples exist excellent brain-teasers released every year lacking appropriate categories in entertainment awards, if they accidentally match award groups including Handheld titles, VR/AR Game, or the intensely contested independent game categories.
- One classic puzzle game received no recognition completely during that awards season
- Another creative title missed out during that ceremony
- Well-received sorting experience received no acknowledgment that year
- Only a few brain-teasers scraped into small studio or handheld classifications
Importance of Logic Titles
Frequently they represent small games, but the art behind logic titles holds tremendous importance. Famous handheld logic titles rank among most engaged experiences globally continuing this trend for many years.
The legendary block-stacking game competes with popular creative games competing to become highest-selling title ever; it additionally competes as greatest title ever. Logic titles represent cornerstones for gaming as medium, and engaging across multiple categories.
Recommendation and Reasoning
Puzzle games wouldn’t have this problem. One could readily select a field of five interesting, varied, worthy titles each ceremony simply — actually, with challenge, because you’d have to leave numerous deserving experiences.
To emphasize again, these are games that otherwise have no home during prominent ceremonies. Logic title developers are working at the hard edge game development, producing among essential manifestations of the video game form. Comparable to movie stunt professionals, they deserve recognition. Don't make them wait generations.
